Fox News Chief Roger Ailes stays mum on prime-time and Megyn Kelly

Roger Ailes, Chairman of Fox News

Jennifer S. Altman / For the Times

Fox News Chairman Roger Ailes confirmed that Megyn Kelly was moving to prime-time. He also joked that he wants to be a contestant on "Dancing with the Stars." Photo: Ailes is seen in the Fox newsroom in Manhattan, NY. 9/29/2006

Fox News Chairman Roger Ailes confirmed that Megyn Kelly was moving to prime-time. He also joked that he wants to be a contestant on "Dancing with the Stars." Photo: Ailes is seen in the Fox newsroom in Manhattan, NY. 9/29/2006 (Jennifer S. Altman / For the Times)

Meg James

Fox News Chairman Roger Ailes is being coy about how he will restructure the network's prime-time lineup to make room for daytime anchor Megyn Kelly.

"Megyn has earned a better time period; she will be in our prime-time lineup," Ailes said Thursday during a "fireside chat" with Fox News Managing Editor Neil Cavuto during an investor conference for parent company 21st Century Fox in Los Angeles.

But Ailes stopped short of saying what time period Kelly, who will be returning from maternity leave, would occupy in the prominent 8 to 11 p.m. prime-time programming block or who she might replace.

"Hannity is a brand who many of our viewers love and want to see, and he's probably the nicest guy in the building," Ailes said. "The difference between Hannity and everyone else [at rival networks] is that he's a conservative but he has liberals on every night to argue with."

"We have a great roster of talent," Ailes said. "I am making a few minor changes, but since Fox News Channel came on, MSNBC and CNN have changed either their prime-time lineup of shows or their prime-time talent 64 times, and I have changed [Fox News'] five or six."

Cavuto joked that the only headliner that Ailes didn't mention was Bill O'Reilly. Said Cavuto, "Sounds to me like O'Reilly is gone."